Deal With Stress

How to take control of your work

Chapter1 Dealing with stress

By Cary Cooper and Susan CartwrightLecturers in organizational psychology and health

Step 1: Spot the symptoms

Behavioral symptoms:

Constant irritability with people

Difficulty in making decisions

Loss of sense of humor Suppressed anger Difficulty concentrating Inability to finish one

task before rushing into another

Physical symptoms:

Lack of appetite Craving for food when

under pressure Frequent indigestion or

heartburn Constipation or

diarrhea Insomnia Tendency to sweat for

no good reason

Step 1: Spot the symptoms

Feeling the target of other people’s animosity

Feeling unable to cope Wanting to cry at the

smallest problem Lack of interest in

doing things after returning home from work

Waking up in the morning and feeling tired after an early night

Constant tiredness

Nervous twitches or nail biting

Headaches Cramps and muscle

spasms Nausea Breathlessness without

exertion Fainting spells Impotency or frigidity Eczema

Step 2: Identify the sources of stress at work

Daily hassles at work:

Trouble with client/customer

Having to work late Constant people

interruptions Trouble with boss Deadlines and time

pressures Decision-making Dealing with the

bureaucracy at work

Traveling associated with the job

Making mistakes Conflict with

organizational goals Job interfering with

home/family life can’t cope with in-tray Can’t say no to work Not enough

stimulating things to do

Step 2: Identify the sources of stress at work

Technological breakdowns

Trouble with work colleagues

Tasks associated with job not stimulating

Too mush responsibility Too many jobs to do at

once Telephone

interruptions Traveling to and from

work

Too many meetings Don’t know where caree

r going Worried about job securit

y Spouse/partner not supp

ortive about work Family life adversely affec

ting work Having to tell subordinat

es unpleasant things, eg redundancy

Step 3: Manage the daily hassles

1. Manage time2. Manage interruptions3.Accept the changing nature of work

Step 3: Manage the daily hassles

1. Manage time The mañanas The poor delegators The disorganised The mushrooms

Top tips for mañanas Break up overwhelming tasks into smaller

jobs. Draw up a ‘to do’ list of all the tasks you

need to complete in the short term (that is, within the next week) and in the long term.

When planning your work schedule, attempt to balance routine tasks with the more enjoyable jobs.

Accept that risks are inevitable and the no decisions are ever made on the basis of complete information

Top tips for poor delegators

Delegation does not mean abdication. Always take time out to explain exactly what is r

equired; poor delegators are often also poor communicators, which is why they are frequently disappointed with the efforts of others.

Having delegated a job, leave the person to get on with it.

Avoid taking on unnecessary work by learning to say ‘no’ politely and assertively.

Top tips for the disorganized Plan effectively before taking action. Make a ‘to do’ list regularly at the start of each

day and review it each evening. Stick to one task and finish it! Think before you telephone; draw up a list of all

the information you require from the caller. Reserve your prime time, when your energy

levels are high, for complex tasks, and save the trivial routine tasks for non-prime time.

When making an appointment in your diary, enter a finish time as well as a start time.

Top tips for mushrooms

Learn to say ‘I don’t know’, when you don’t know something.

Learn to say ‘I don’t understand’ when you don’t’ understand a task, a role, or objective.

Step 3: Manage the daily hassles

2. Manage interruptions New technology Drop-by colleagues

Top tips for managing technology For telephone calls: batch your phone calls;

plan what you are going to say and need to know in advance, and deliberately discipline yourself by placing specific time limits on the length of a call.

For voice mail: only use this when you need space to carry out complex tasks requiring your full attention, and don’t be tempted to access your voice mail messages every ten minutes! Also deal with those messages that are most important first; deal with the others later.

Top tips for managing technology For e-mails: prioritise your mails according to t

heir importance to your objectives, then reply to them in this order. All too often, individuals reply to e-mails in order of their arrival and not in terms of their importance.

For mobiles: don’t keep your phone switched on all the time because it could interrupt an important meeting or activity. Use mobiles on journeys or during other periods of down time to deal with work in your in-tray that you would other wise have to deal with when back at work.

Top tips for managing drop-by colleagues

Establish quiet hours during which you can work undisturbed. This may mean closing your door and putting a notice outside.

Establish visiting hours when you are available for drop-in visitors.

Arrange meetings away from your desk or office; this enables you to take control and leave when you want to.

Do not hesitate to curb wafflers, in a polite and friendly manner, by asking them to make their main point (s).

When unexpectedly interrupted, ask the person how much time he or she needs and, if you haven’t got the space, then rearrange the meeting.

Step 3: Manage the daily hassles

3.Accept the changing nature of work One of the major sources of stress for

managers today is the fact that jobs are no longer for life-job security is a thing of the past. Organizations expect employees to be more flexible, more accountable, and to be hardworking and committed; at the same time, employers offer increasingly limited (or no) assurances or expectations of employment security and career development opportunities.

Step 4: Plan to deal with your own stress Understand what causes you stress, when you are

likely to become stressed, and how you can avoid these situations.

Take responsibility. Consider what is causing stress. Anticipate stressful periods (either at work or home)

and plan for them. Develop strategies for handling stress. Understand and use management techniques to

prevent or reduce stress. Relax! Acknowledge stress in others. Build a positive team environment.

Common mistakes

You think you can do it all alone You don’t say ‘no’ You succumb to a ‘ long hours

culture’ at work You take it out on others

Steps to success

Recognizing the symptoms and understanding the causes of workplace stress is vital in preventing it becoming an issue.

The changing nature of work makes stress more complex, varied, and quite possibly more common

Remember that you have to work at reducing stress-it won’t happen by itself!